2010 AmeriCorps Week Announced!

Guest posted by the Michigan’s AmeriCorps Team

The dates for the fourth annual AmeriCorps Week have been announced – and it’s scheduled for May 8 – 15, 2010!  AmeriCorps Week is a recruitment and recognition initiative to bring more Americans into service, salute AmeriCorps members and alums for their powerful impact, and thank the community partners who make AmeriCorps possible.

Regardless if you’re an AmeriCorps member, program, alumni, sponsor, or friend, you can help shine a spotlight on the great work being done by AmeriCorps members across the country.  There are a variety of ways you can get involved during AmeriCorps Week, including the following:

• Planning an open house, service project, or special event.
• Making a presentation to a school or community group.
• Entering the national AmeriCorps Video and/or Photo Contests.
• Blogging about your AmeriCorps experience (we’d love to hear your story – submit to verberkmoese@michigan.gov).
• Thanking your AmeriCorps members and community supporters.
• Reconnecting with AmeriCorps Alums.

We know what you might be thinking…. Isn’t it a little early to be thinking about the 2010 AmeriCorps Week?  No!  Now is the time to start planning your efforts for next year and there are many resources that can help you get started today.

Michigan State University Extension will be conducting a webinar on AmeriCorps Week and the art of planning a service project this coming April.  The webinar will highlight tools and resources to help you plan a successful project and will include information on choosing, publicizing, and executing your efforts.  You can register for this free opportunity by clicking here.

The Corporation for National and Community Service already has tips, tools, and inspiration for the 2010 AmeriCorps Week available at www.AmeriCorpsWeek.gov.

The Michigan Community Service Commission and Michigan’s AmeriCorps is excited about next year’s AmeriCorps Week – stay tuned for more information in the future about this opportunity to support national service.

AmeriCorps News You Can Use!

Guest posted by the Michigan’s AmeriCorps Team

Much has been going on in recent weeks that will impact the greater AmeriCorps community. The Michigan’s AmeriCorps Member Council blog would like to share that news with you as we embark on the 2009-2010 year of service.

CNCS CEO nominated by President Obama
Earlier this month President Barack Obama announced his intention to nominate Patrick Corvington to be the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS).

Patrick Corvington currently serves at the Annie E. Casey Foundation as a Senior Associate responsible for guiding the foundation’s grantees on issues related to leadership development, next generation leadership, and capacity building. In addition to that, he also serves as Senior Advisor to the Foundation’s Executive Vice President, Ralph Smith. Prior to his current position, Corvington was the Executive Director of Innovation Network from 2003 to 2005. Innovation Network is a nonprofit agency whose mission is to build the evaluation capacity of the nonprofit sector.

He has a strong connection to service, volunteerism, and advocacy and has devoted his life to serving and empowering communities.

Would you like to be a peer grant reviewer? CNCS could use your help!
Are you looking for an opportunity for professional development and service? The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) is seeking peer reviewers to assist in the review of its competitive grant applications.

A diverse group of people with expertise in a variety of areas who can assess the quality of grant applications are needed. Reviewers should be comfortable reading a large volume of material in a short period of time and be capable of providing in-depth individual analysis and participating in small group discussions. Reviewers could include members of the national service community, educators, researchers, volunteers, and others.

Reviewers are needed on an on-going basis; feel free to visit http://www.nationalservice.gov/egrants/peer_review.asp for more information and to submit your name.

- Information courtesy of the Corporation for National and Community Service

What an exciting year for Michigan’s AmeriCorps!

Guest posting by the Michigan’s AmeriCorps Team

The 2009-2010 program year looks to be an exciting time for Michigan’s AmeriCorps! We are welcoming back 17 veteran programs that are “Getting Things Done” in our communities and two brand-new programs that are looking to kick things off.

During this coming year there will be more than 1,100 Michigan’s AmeriCorps members across the state to address our communities toughest challenges, including education, environment, public safety, and disaster preparedness. Twenty of those members will be serving with Michigan’s AmeriCorps’ newest grantees: the Power of We Consortium AmeriCorps Project and the Schools of Hope AmeriCorps Program.

The Ingham County Health Department’s Power of We Consortium AmeriCorps Project will enroll 10 full-time members to focus on two key project goals: creating, expanding, and/or maintaining trails, greenways, parks, and non-motorized transportation options; and creating, expanding, and/or maintaining community gardens, sustainable food systems, and access to healthy foods. Members will provide direct service to their host sites and the community in three focus areas: recruitment and mobilization of community volunteers; community education; and training, supporting, and modeling direct service work for community volunteers.

The Literacy Center of West Michigan’s Schools of Hope AmeriCorps Program will enroll 10 full-time members in service at Grand Rapids-area elementary schools to improve the reading ability of children, increase the capacity of parents to support their children, and increase the capacity of parents to compete more effectively in the workplace. Students will be paired with an adult to receive weekly tutoring in reading skills in order to increase their grades and MEAP scores. Michigan’s AmeriCorps members will also provide weekly literacy enrichment activities for parents in order to help them better assist their children and reach their own educational and/or employment goals.

These program’s service sites will be confirmed soon with members beginning service in early November. The Michigan Community Service Commission’s AmeriCorps team is also looking forward to the next year.

“We’re always excited to welcome new initiatives into the Michigan’s AmeriCorps network of programs,” said Michigan’s AmeriCorps Program Officer Marcy Bishop Kates. “Each of these new programs will address critical needs in their respective communities.”

For more information on AmeriCorps in Michigan, visit www.michigan.gov/mcsc.

Michigan’s AmeriCorps – Kicking Off a New Year of Service!

By: Guest Blogger Megan Sargent, Training & Inclusion Coordinator at the Michigan Community Service Commission

The 2008-2009 program year for Michigan’s AmeriCorps has drawn to a close – although we won’t soon forget the successes of this past year. More than 1,000 individuals served Michigan’s communities as AmeriCorps members last year assisting with human needs, education, environment, disaster preparedness, and much more! Now we look forward to the 2009-2010 program year and the countless ways national service will impact communities across the state.

During this next year the Michigan Community Service Commission (MCSC), through funds from the Corporation for National and Community Service, is granting money to 19 Michigan’s AmeriCorps programs. These grantees will place more than 1,100 Michigan’s AmeriCorps members in communities across the state to “Get Things Done for America!”

In the immediate future there will be a variety of professional development opportunities for our new and returning Michigan’s AmeriCorps members. Each fall the MCSC hosts the Michigan’s AmeriCorps Member Celebration. This event provides a chance for all members to come together for a day of training, motivation, teambuilding, and festivities. Every year a keynote speaker is also welcomed – for 2009 the MCSC has invited Tony Campbell, Vice President of Focused Impact at the Heart of West Michigan United Way, MCSC Commissioner, and chair of the Mentor Michigan Task Force. This year’s Celebration will occur on Thursday, November 19 at the Kellogg Center in East Lansing. Click here for a complete agenda of this year’s Celebration. If you are a current Michigan’s AmeriCorps member, mark that date on your calendar!

November will also bring the kickoff of the 2009-2010 Michigan’s AmeriCorps Member Council. The Member Council aims to strengthen the national service movement and the awareness of AmeriCorps in Michigan through effective outreach, community-wide service projects, and civic engagement. Annually, the Member Council consists of AmeriCorps members from each of the MCSC’s Michigan’s AmeriCorps grantees, as well as representatives from AmeriCorps*VISTA and AmeriCorps*National Direct programs in Michigan.

One of the roles of the Michigan’s AmeriCorps Member Council is the maintaining and authoring of this blog. For the time being you will find guest posters contributing their thoughts here with new member postings coming later this fall!

The Michigan Community Service Commission is looking forward to a productive year with Michigan’s AmeriCorps members. We believe in changing lives by engaging people in service.